ReMix:Gunstar Heroes "Bullet Hell" 3:56

Mr. DusK was all over Be Aggressive!, so the album kinda emerged with his stamp on the overall style, which I'd describe as "rough & tumble" and "ready to rock" - this rolling, synth-rock-metal jam being no exception:

"When Dj Mokram unfortunately had to drop this track, I knew that it needed to be done the kind of justice that only he could have done it. Knowing full well I couldn't do that myself, I picked it up anyway. Dj Mokram's vision for the track involved orchestral elements meshing with futuristic-sounding synths, and I tried to bring a bit of that into my track along with a steady rock sound.

I really feel like I did a good job on this one. I was heavily inspired by Mass Effect's music (especially that part between 2:20 and 2:58), and I really tried to bring some of that 80s/90s sci-fi aesthetic into the track using carefully-placed and modulated yet often vanilla-sounding synths. As far as the metal instrumentation, I tried to give it a sort of 80s hair metal feel, but with a modern metalcore twist, a lot like Blessed by a Broken Heart. Enjoy. :)"

Nice synth-heavy intro as guitar solos on top before the jams are kicked out circa 0'27" with a harder groove; heavy shred/chug rhythm action, rise/fall synth pluck arpeggios, and meaty drums. 1'37" enters into a sort of half-tempo metal cadence, before a build and then recapitulation of the intro aesthetic; good changeup. Palpable writes:

"Nothing crazy as far as arrangement ideas go, but a solid concept and execution. Good partwriting and good synthesis of metal and synths, which doesn't always come across that well...The mixing was also on the crowded side, and I wanted a little more breathing room. Those issues aside, this was good work and an enjoyable listen."

Dustin's got a great sense of structure and represents the double-threat of someone who can do synths & guitars all by himself and have it sound good; the only lingering criticism that seems to keep popping up is getting a little more air & crispness on the mixing/mastering side of things. I'll personally confess that I HAVE been known to use BBE Sonic Maximizer on occasion to achieve this, which is almost like using FL's Soundgoodizer, but it's not really the means that matter when it comes to audio engineering - it's the ends. While most of DusK's mixes could stand a little sharpening & clearer high-end, it's not really a MAJOR issue for any of them; just one of those things to consider for the future. As for this mix, I love the energy level and I feel like some solid, creative decisions were made about the structure that keep it interesting AND fun!